wow, i don't know around here i found cheap places i was sitting down calling a bunch of numbers from mapquest a few did tell me 150+ but if thats the case then buy a new set of rims and keep those on the side

 

Here in California you can get powdercoating done for $85 a wheel. This company is who does the work for the dealers in the area plus many other manufacturing businesses in the area. My friend had his rims of his 04' Z06 done in black and they came out looking good. Many factory painted wheels have a protective plastic coating applied to them that should be removed for best performance. I agree with the others that the prep work is important. The paint job will only look as good as the prep you put in. the other thing to think about if you powder coat most places only want the rim so you need to have them off the car and get the tire demounted from the rim. This means that you will have to put your car on stands or have another set of wheels to use while they work on the powdercoat.

 

I am pretty sure that the factory wheels are coated in an epoxy paint and that's why they are less prone to chipping.
Brake caliper paint? My painted calipers chip all the time, I wouldn't go there.

 

that's because your brake calipers get hot....rims don't get as hot as brakes do or even close so you shouldn't have a prob, like i said my buddy has had the duplicolor brake caliper paint on his rims for a year now and he hasn't had any trouble neither has it chipped yet.

 

Paint doesn't stick to aluminum very well....

 

paint the wheels & take soem picks..

i cant find a place that will powder c0at wheels for less then $150/wheel around here...